Well-screen.



M. E. LAYNE.

WELL SCREEN.

APPLIQATIONPILBD Amm, 191s.

1,688,078, Patented Feb. 24, 1.9M

sgml: man

r f/ /vITNEssEs f 4 INVENTOR To all fwiom it may concern:

peretus apparatus embodying the 'menton' n. Lerne, or notieren, TEXAS.

WELL-sonnen.

nos/ents.

Application filed. April 1, 1913. Serial No. 768,142.

Be it known that l, VlllAriLoiv E. LAYNE, a citirenv of the United States, residing at Houston, in the county of Harris and State of Texas, have invented certain new and useful. Improvements in Well- Screens, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to well screens, the

resent invention constituting e modification of the ap disclosed in my Patent No. 1,062,717, issued May Q7, 1913. Thev invention hes for its objects, the provision of en` improved type of screen which can be more easily sunk, and one in which the tende'ny of the front end of the screen to deilect laterally in the4 driving operation is snbstrintially eliminated. Certain embodiments ofthe invention are illustre-ted in the accompanying drawing wherein-A 'lBigui-o l is a vertical section through the ground, showing the metal screen in side elevation with n portion thereof broken sway; Fig. 2 is a side elevation of a inodiication; end Fig. 3 is o. side elevation of the lower end of still another modification.

The screen is of metal, and may be eroruted in order to provide for the in ovv of water or other liquid in any manner lniown in the art. The screen may be made o ordinary tubing, but is preferably mede vgether to of sheet 'metal bent into cylindrical form, the sections thus formed being secured toprovide s screen of any desired length.

In the forni of screen illustrated the perfoi-ations are of the type illustrated Vin my Patent #1,001,655, issued August 29, 1911,

-such perforations being yin the iorm'of cir cumerential slits; These slitsare ormedby means of opposing serrated dies, one insidel the tube and the other outside the tube,

which dies'are bron ht toward each othery and sheer out the slits and bend the strips of metal between the slits into the angular 'positions indicated in the drawings." This crm ot' perforation has special adminte es,

as 1,001,655, but such feature constitutes vvno part of my ,present invention.

The screen as illustrated in Fiom 1 coin-v the ex# prises three portions, A, B, 'and treme lower portion A being cylindrical, the portion B thereabove being tapering, und the portion C above the tapering por- ,tionV being cylindrical. The perforetions v1 Specification of Letters Patent.

pointed outin ,the said'-Patent" o.V

rei-,enten Feb. et, 1914.

es above described are placed on those'porytions. of the screen 1jexposed to the Waterbeering strata, the,upper portion of the screen not egiposed to witter-bearing strata and the portion A being lettunperforated es indicgtted in Fig. 1. The lower edge of the'A section A is provided with. n cutting shoe 2 which may be of eny approved forni, end

serves to facilitate the `sinking of the tube into the ground.

Surrounding the screen ebove the tapering portion B and supported thereby, is the tubular envelop of linely divided screening material 3 .preferably of gravel, such tubular envelop bearing at its inner surface'upon the screen, sind at its outer Asurface upon the clay or other material through which the tube is sunk.

In positioning the screen the gravel '3 is inserted as the tube inoves down and es the dirt is removed frornthe interior of the tube. The Weight of the gravel thus in. serted assists in the downward movement of the tube, rind serves to prevent the .soil around the tube treinv caving, theedvantages of this general type of construction being pointed out in my Patent No.-`

1,062,711 referred to. t

.The use of the straight cylindrical. portion A below Ithe tapering portion B has been found tobe of' advnntege-,inesinuch es such construction tends to prevent the 4tube from Working laterally' during its descent, es is the case Where the tiered or tapering vportion isnt the extreme lower end of the tubing. The lower cylindrical poi'- tion A therefore serves as e guide, andcauses the tube to descend in e true vertical path. The construction is of particular advnto e Where the soil formation is uneven en one portion ofcthe end of the tube engages. a formation harder or more resistant-thalpganother portionbf the tube, as in such 'fon ations the tendency of the end of they tube' to :be deflected vlaterally is greatly increasedfThe length of the portions A and-B :indfthe inclination of the portion B,

.iney be vdr'ied'to 'zenit-conditions, and any type of perforation-'indy be employed. M

of the tube is et its extreme lower end, the cylindrical guiding portionfA'f Fig. 1 being omitted. The portion E'ubove the ta-` pering portion D is cylindricolgand coriev f .sponde to the portion Cof ig. lpggTbe perf forations l are formed in the same manner as the perforations 1 in the structure of Fig. 1, and the screening envelop is applied and performsv the same function asin the structure of Fig. 1. Akv cutting shoe2 is applied to the lower end of the section D. The construction has the advantage over that of my said Patent' No. 1,062,717 in that it is easier to construct a screen having the lower section only taperedl than it is to construct one which tapers all the way from its lower to its up er end. The construction also has the fort r advantafre that the gravel envelopesrrounding the metal screen has a maximum uniform thickness clear from the upper end of the section D to the top of the screen, instead ot' an envelop which decreases in thickness from the top of the Well to the lower end thereof. The body of gravel and the screening capacity is therefore correspondingly increased with this type of aparatus, although the guiding feature incient t'o the use of the cylindrical section A of Fig. 1 is not present, the construction of F ig. l having a marked superiority in this' respect. The general features of advantage incident to this type of construction employing the gravel envelop are fully set forth in my said Patent No. 1,062,717, which is the generic case in so far as the fundamental feature involved is concerned.

Fig. 3 illustrates a modification of the structure of Fig. 1, the i.distinction being that the lower cylindrical -`-portion A2 is provided with slots 12 instead of beingfle unperforated, the construction being desirable 1n cases where the lower portion A2 is embedded in a water bearing stratum instead of in clay or other non-water bearing material. The screen is in other respects the same as in the construction of Fig. 1.

4What I claim is:` 1. VA well screen comprising a perforated metal tube having its upper portion cylindrical and a portion adjacent the lower end against the material in which the screen is located, the thickness of the walls of the tubular screenin envelop being such that it may be inserted as the tube moves down.

2. A well screen comprising a perforated metal tube having its extreme lower end cylindrical, a portion above such cylindrical portion tapering inward and a cylindrical portion above such tapering portion, and a tubular envelop of loose screening material extending upward from the tapering portion of the tube and sup orted thereon and bearing at its inner sur ace against the tube and at its outer surface against the material in which the screen is located, the thickness of the walls of the tubular screening envelop being such that it may be inserted as the tube moves down.

3. A, well screen of 'perforated metal tubing comprising'ar straight cylindrical portion at the lower end, a tapering portion thereabove, and another straight cylindrlcal portion above the tapering portion.

4. A well screen of perforated metal tubing comprising ata ermg portion largest at its lower portlon a jacent the lower end of the tube, guide means projecting downwardly from the lower e'dge of the tapering portion and provided with cuttin means,

and a straight cylindrical portion a ove the ta ering portion.

Iiin testimony7` whereof I have hereunto si ed my name in the presence of the two su scribed witnesses.

MAHLON E. LAYNE.

Witnesses:

JNO. Immer, AOLLYN A. LAYNE. 

